Author
Topic: My First Cracker!! (Read 5251 times)

Ohh Pizza !!!! What a great dough and how incredibly easy !!! This was fantastic and sooo easy ! Granted I made some small errors that I know can be corrected but holly smokes, to be so close to perfection after the first try ... ?? Seriously! http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,1311.msg11794.html#msg11794 I went out and bought the scale but goofed up and added 1/2 oz too much water... I think that may have been the issue! Short of that it was AWSOME.... I have paid for worse pizza by far....

I cannot wait to do the next one! Mods & site junkies, thanks so much for the info here! My pics will get better as I will quit using my phone to take pics but will use my "real" camera when the pie is worthy! not there yet!!WONDERFUL SITE!!!!!!!!

How crisp did you get it? I have not been able to get the crusts crisp when using any pan. The only way I found which works for me is to cook directly on stone @ 525. No less heat. How crisp was the center and how long did it stay crisp for...color looks excellent.

BBh... hey I was thinking about a few things.... did you follow the instructions to to the "t" or did you just wing it? The other thing was you need to make sure that you PAr-Bake the crust to keep it from being doughy! That may have been an issue but please let us know so we can help you out!

BBH I owe this next one to you!! In an effort to improve on my first try and to help you out I whipped another out for dinner tonight! Heres what I did different from the first time.I used the scale again and stuck to the weights to the nut! NO deviations!!!The dough came out just like the "cornmeal" mix as described. There was just enough moisture to wad up the dough into a ball... BUT.... it was a bit of a pain to roll into a slab for the pan.No real issue as it finaly gave in to my efforts. A little more water would have helped the rolling but would have comprimised the final product and taken away from the texture of the baked crust.Threw it on the trusty pan and cut off the excess... and threw it into the oven at 500 for 4 mins.... Looked at it at 3 mins and saw BUBBLES..... NOOOOOOOO I was doing so well!! ... Oh yea... Dont be a goof and forget to Dock the dough... DOH!!!! Removed it and did a quick fork assault to the bubbles and dough...threw it back in for another 60 seconds to finish the pre-bake and pulled it out!WHEW... disaster averted... Little bit bit of burns to the hands but One more beer and who cares right? Prepped the pie and threw it back in the oven.

Clean up the kitchen and dont tell the wife I tosted my paws .... Done and time to pull out the Pie!!!

OHHHH Glory AGAIN! Wow, just a simple pizza that comes out sooo well.

Oh, I have to say that this also was the first time I used Fresh Basil..... Oh My God.... that alone transforms a so so piza into something special.... god help me that was good!

Once again bow to the 1000+ posters on the board... thanks for the help & information!!!

Looks excellent! My issue was accomplishing the same but w/o par bake. The water ratios in the mix are at approx 40% which is where I'm at and that seems to make the best cracker thus far. I have been able to achieve the cracker w/o par bake but only on stone, never a pan for me anyway. In order to make that happen, 40% is it, any less and the dough is too difficult to deal with. Also, I had to change the way sauce is applied. It cannot go directly on the crust (which with par bake you can), instead, thin cheese layer on dough, meats, then sauce applied in "blobs" via a sauce bottle, then veggies. A drastically different way for me to make pizza but the end result was excellent. Go cracker! to bad many places don't make it.

Your pizza looks great and really like the slightly rolled up edge and color is perfect.

My issue was accomplishing the same but w/o par bake. The water ratios in the mix are at approx 40% which is where I'm at and that seems to make the best cracker thus far. I have been able to achieve the cracker w/o par bake but only on stone, never a pan for me anyway. In order to make that happen, 40% is it, any less and the dough is too difficult to deal with. Also, I had to change the way sauce is applied. It cannot go directly on the crust (which with par bake you can), instead, thin cheese layer on dough, meats, then sauce applied in "blobs" via a sauce bottle, then veggies. A drastically different way for me to make pizza but the end result was excellent. Go cracker! to bad many places don't make it.

BBH,

Out of curiosity, what kinds of problems have you been experiencing when using a hydration value below 40%?

I wouldn't say a problem per say, I can get down to the upper 30's - 37,38 etc...but I want to see a complete build in the mxer. I use 90% KAAP + 10% Semolina and 40% gives me the completeness I am looking for. The Semolina seems to absorb more water content. Also, it might just be me, but flavor wise it seems better with a few percentage points more. 40% seems to work best for me, crusts are razor thin, crisp and very strong, and with the Semolina slightly more tender + a golden color. Oil @ 3.5, IDF 1.25 as well as salt. 82 degress after 7 minute mix - 18-24 hr rise in fridge @ 36 degrees. Loaded up or not, using stone @ 30 minute preheat @ 525 for 15-20 minutes + 3 min cool down - an entire 14" pizza can be supported in the center with 3 fingers - totally flat. In addition, by applying sauce by the alternative method, the pizza can be flipped upside down with nothing coming off..pretty cool.

But I can't do it in a pan but would like to because I like the lip the pan provides. Just haven't had success with than one.

The biggest problem that most people have when working with cracker style doughs with a hydration in the 30s is rolling out the skins.

I, too, found that putting the cheese down first was a good idea. Maybe you have already seen the thread at http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,5762.msg48991.html#msg48991 but it addresses and solves the problem with rolling out low hydration doughs. It also is heavy on the use of cutter pans, although pre-baking seemed to be the best method to use with such pans, along with using very thin skins for extra crispiness. There are a lot of other helpful tips in that thread.

I'm lucky, I don't have any of the rolling out issues as I have a Colborne roller in the garage + 30qt Hobart. (sitting next to my car..lol). For me it the completeness of the mix after mixing. I'll check out the cutter pans and the thread - thanks! Maybe that will get it where it needs to be....